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On Demand

Soundcheck

Thursday, March 17, 2005
  • From Irish Eyes to Short Attention Spans

    The book Green Suede Shoes is a rock 'n' roll story of Irish immigration, told by Larry Kirwan, the leader of the Irish American rock band, Black 47. It describes his journey from County Wexford, Ireland to the Bronx and follows him downtown to the clubs of the Lower East Side, where his best friends in his new homeland were the punk rockers the Ramones, the soon-to-be-starlit Cyndi Lauper and the future members of his legendary band. In celebration of St. Patrick's Day, he walks us through his musical memoir. Also: an oft-cited criticism of classical music is that symphonies, operas, etc. are just too long. But there are also plenty of examples of composers who can write really short pieces – many less than one minute in length - and still get their point across, from Chopin to Webern. Briefing us on this issue is Frank Oteri, composer and editor of NewMusicBox.org.

Introducing our Video Contest

Soundcheck

John Schaefer gives the lowdown on Soundcheck's music video challenge with the Fiery Furnaces.

In Studio: Angel Deradoorian

Soundcheck

The 22-year-old multi-instrumentalist performs live in our studio.

Cucu Diamantes Performs Amor Cronico

Soundcheck

Cucu Diamantes went from a tough childhood in Havana, Cuba, to an art school in Rome to underground New York City, where she co-founded the Latin alternative band Yerba Buena.

In Studio: Stephanie McKay

Soundcheck

The local singer-songwriter performs "Jackson Avenue," a nostalgic toast to her childhood in the South Bronx.

In Studio: The Decemberists

The Portland, Ore., band's latest album, "The Hazards of Love," is a concept album with a mythological flair. They joined Soundcheck to play live for a studio audience in WNYC's Greene Space.

Sound Off

Soundcheck

Throughout May, Soundcheck presents “Sound Off” a Friday series on the many aspects of noise in music and our lives. The series -- which coincides with “Better Hearing and Speech Month” -- looks at issues like New York’s noisiest neighborhoods, the latest research on iPods and hearing loss, and what happens when noise becomes a musical ingredient.